PARIS: Marseille coach Roberto De Zerbi was so confounded by his team’s bad form that he considered quitting just months after arriving.
That was back in November when, following home defeats to Paris Saint-Germain and Auxerre, he said he was ready to leave. The 45-year-old Italian soon backtracked and affirmed his commitment to stay and turn things around.
Whatever he told the players at that time clearly worked, as did an arduous four-day camp. There were daily 5 a.m. wake-up calls for jogs on an empty stomach, followed by twice-daily training sessions.
Marseille is looking much sharper and fitter as a result.
The 1993 Champions League winner has won five of its six matches since the Auxerre loss and drawn the other against Lille — a decent result considering Lille is undefeated in all competitions since mid-September.
Marseille has rediscovered its touch, too, scoring 17 goals during that period, and has moved into second place in Ligue 1 behind leader Paris Saint-Germain, which is seven points ahead after 16 rounds.
Marseille travels to play Rennes on Saturday and PSG hosts lowly Saint-Etienne on Sunday.
De Zerbi has tightened things up tactically and is starting to work Marseille into a more streamlined side.
During his time with Brighton in the English Premier League, he earned a reputation as a shrewd tactician capable of beating bigger teams. He left Brighton after two seasons, having raised the team to its highest ever top-flight finish of sixth, and into the last 16 of the Europa League.
De Zerbi’s decision to join Marseille, which has passionate but impatient fans, surprised many observers. Even before his time at Brighton, De Zerbi had earned good reviews in Italy with Benevento and Sassuolo. He was widely praised for guiding Sassuolo to back-to-back eighth-place finishes in Serie A and touted as one of the best young coaches in Europe.
He had bigger clubs than Marseille calling for him last summer, but perhaps he saw the depth of Marseille’s potential — which is the only French club to win the Champions League and has a 67,000-capacity stadium.
De Zerbi has instilled a healthy competition for places within his squad and strengthened it further on Tuesday by signing central defender Luiz Felipe, who made over 100 appearances for Lazio in Serie A from 2017-22.
Felipe’s arrival comes after De Zerbi reproached his players for conceding too many goals — 19 in the league so far, compared with 14 for PSG and 16 for third-place Monaco and fourth-place Lille.
“We need so start thinking that 5-0 and 5-1 are not the same thing,” he said after Sunday’s 5-1 home rout of Le Havre at Stade Velodrome. “We need to make other teams understand that scoring a goal against us is difficult.”
Felipe said the possibility of playing under De Zerbi was “fundamental” in his decision to join.
“I have known De Zerbi since he was Sassuolo, it was always difficult to play against him,” Felipe said.
Key players have emerged into leadership roles, such as Argentina goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli and France midfielder Adrien Rabiot.
Playing in a role higher up the field allows Rabiot to make more dangerous use of his excellent passing range and eye for long-distance shooting.
Signing the 29-year-old Rabiot was seen as something of a coup of Marseille, considering that he is entering his prime years and his wealth of experience with Italian giant Juventus (212 matches overall) and France (50 caps).
“We need two, three, four or five Rabiots,” De Zerbi said recently.
Then he added, jokingly: “I asked him if he has any brothers, but unfortunately they don’t play football.”

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: Young starlets Gavi and Lamine Yamal fired Barcelona, without Dani Olmo after his license to play was revoked, into the Spanish Super Cup final with a 2-0 win against Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday.
Spanish playmaker Olmo was cleared to play again on a temporary basis before the game but the decision came too late for him or Pau Victor, in the same position, to feature against Copa del Rey winners Athletic.
Gavi put Barcelona ahead from close range after 17 minutes and teenage winger Yamal netted the second early after the break.
Spanish and European champions Real Madrid face cup runners-up Mallorca on Thursday in the second semifinal in Saudi Arabia, where the competition has been held for the past few years.
“Athletic are a very physical team that make you run a lot, we suffered above all toward the end, but we were able to play well and we’re very happy,” Yamal told Movistar.
The winger said Olmo and Victor were pleased to be allowed to play once more.
“In the end you’re nervous when you can’t play and when you get news like that, you’re very happy,” added Yamal.
Barca coach Hansi Flick hailed the decision from Spain’s national sports council regarding Olmo and Victor.
“The whole club is very happy for this right decision,” said Flick, hoping to win his first silverware at the helm of Barca.
“We wanted to show we are a team and we win also for them.”
Barcelona, who qualified as La Liga runners-up, started brightly and Raphinha volleyed over from a fine Jules Kounde cross and forced Unai Simon into a good save with a free-kick.
It was no surprise when the Catalans broke the deadlock with Alejandro Balde cutting the ball back for Gavi, playing in Olmo’s attacking midfield role, to turn home for his first goal since suffering a severe knee injury last season.
The 20-year-old pointed at an imaginary watch in his celebration, a nod to Olmo who regularly produces the same gesture after scoring.
At the other end Inaki Williams dallied on the ball too long as Athletic’s best attacking move of the first half broke down.
Yamal, returning after an ankle problem, should have added Barcelona’s second after Raphinha’s shot was saved but the 17-year-old miscued an attempted lob.
Wojciech Szczesny, on his second start in goal for Barcelona, made a good save to keep Inaki Williams at bay before the break.
Barcelona doubled their lead early in the second half when Gavi slipped in Yamal who finished with aplomb.
Veteran Polish forward Robert Lewandowski spurned a fine chance to add the third, firing off-target when well placed.
Athletic coach Ernesto Valverde, who was sacked as Barcelona boss after a defeat at the same stadium in 2020, brought on Nico Williams to try and turn the game around.
The Spain international, heavily linked with Barcelona in the summer, was not fit enough to start, but made a positive impact from the bench.
The winger set up Oscar de Marcos to strike but the Athletic defender had strayed just offside and the goal was ruled out.
Inaki Williams also had a goal ruled out for offside after Frenkie De Jong’s poor back-pass took a slight deflection off Alvaro Djalo on its way to the Ghana international.
“It’s a shame given all the effort... but we have good things ahead of us and we have to continue,” said Inaki Williams.
Barcelona were able to book their place in Sunday’s final, in which Olmo will be allowed to feature.
“We don’t care (who we face in the final), it will be hard and we want to win it, which is the important thing, and go back home with the trophy,” said Yamal.